Patents EP 592376 and EP 635593 disclose a method and a machine for manufacturing tubular articles such as stockings, starting from the elastic edge or hem and finishing on the toe side. In the first of the above cited patents, provision is made for closing the toe in correspondence of the cylinder of needles performing the knitting of the article. The second of these patents discloses a method and a machine for closing the article toe outside the needles cylinder, that is, at a station separated from that for knitting. However, in both cases, although the resulting is article results of a very high quality with respect to the standards usually accepted in the sector, the structural and operational complexity of the machine increases the relevant manufacturing cost.
Document WO 97/20089 refers to a method and apparatus for closing the toe of a tubular knitted article, on the same machine on which the article is made, wherein the initial step for knitting the article portion intended to form the toe is accomplished by using the needles of half the knitting cylinder, the needles cooperating with the hooks of the plate, so as to engage this part of the fabric to the structure of the plate, as normally provided for the execution of the so-called "double edge" and as disclosed in the documents FR 1.346.518 and DE 1.635.992. The stitches associated to the hooks of the plate are then withdrawn by an assembly of members with hooks and relevant closing pegs carried by a semicrown pivoted to a diametral axis of the needles cylinder to allow said stitches to be taken out and subsequently moved by an overturning of said crown through 180.degree. about said axis following the removal of the plate from the needles working area, in order to dispose these stitches onto the needles of the other half of the cylinder and then to continue the knitting until the formation of the elastic edge or hem. However, although this document does not describe in detail the structure of the machine and, in particular, the means which should provide for the control and execution of said overturning, as well as for resuming the initial condition of said semicrown, it can be inferred therefrom that the latter is engaged to the cylinder. Accordingly, the rotation of the cylinder upon the knitting of any portion of the article would imply the corresponding driving into rotation of the semicrown and of all the members housed therein. This, obviously, brings about a structural complexity of the machine and a higher energy consumption since the driving of the semicrown is operated simultaneously to all the working steps during which the members for transferring the stitches from one side to the other of the cylinder are inoperative. In any case, the constant presence of the semicrown onboard of the machine implies signficant changes in the relevant structural parts thereof, expecially as far as the sinkers housing, sinkers crown and sinkers themselves are concerned, and this, besides heavily limiting the possibility of modifying the existing machines--whose construction could by no means allow these modifications--also causes a corresponding increase of the manufacturing cost.